I'm Coming Home
by fireblayse1864
Summary: Zara Lockwood ran away from home three years ago, wanting to escape her parents' control. They didn't accept her for who she was, always looking down on her like she was a freak. But she found a home in Arizona, much happier than she was. But one day, 3 weeks ago, she killed someone. And now she wants answers. Is going back to Mystic Falls going to answer them?
1. Prologue

Epilogue-

As soon as Zara Lockwood closed her eyes, she knew she was going to have that same nightmare she'd been having for a few weeks now.

_She was at her best friend, Savannah's, 21st birthday party. Zara and Savannah had been planning this day for weeks, making sure that Savannah's parents were away whilst the party went ahead (they were staying in their holiday home in Hawaii), they made sure everyone cool enough in the small town they lived in, just outside of Arizona, were attending, they made sure they had gorgeous dresses to wear, the perfect hair, make-up and nails; made sure the alcohol was there._

But what they didn't count on was that Zara would kill someone.

Who would expect something so drastic, so horrifying, could happen at this party?

No one could. And that's why Zara couldn't be saved.

_It was 11pm. Everyone was already here, music was blaring out so loud, she was surprised that the neighbours hadn't called the cops on them yet. Zara was in the kitchen, talking to Savannah, when two slim, strong arms wrapped themselves round Savannah's waist. Zara looked up into the face of the owner of the arms and frowned. It was Savannah's ex-boyfriend, Jake._

Zara jerked in her sleep. She had never been one to like Jake, and ever since she'd met him, she'd felt bad vibes coming from him, something that Savannah clearly hadn't seen at the beginning of their relationship, as she'd stayed with that bastard for almost a year before she decided enough was enough and broke it off with him, but Jake was persistent, and hadn't left Savannah or her phone line alone for longer than a day.

_Savannah elbowed him in the ribs, quite hard for her petite 5'4" frame, but the slow did nothing for Jake's hard, strong abs, that even Zara had to admit were sexy as hell._

_All Jake did was chuckle to himself and run a finger down Savannah's arm._

_Zara just stood there and watched, her green eyes narrowing and her palm becoming increasingly tighter around the glass she was holding. She knew she was no match for a guy like him; a 6'2", ex-high school football player and went to the gym more than five times a week. So she stood there, helpless, watching her best friend get harassed by Jake._

_"What the hell do you want, Jake?" she demanded, not bothering to turn around and look at him. Savannah may be small in size, but she was adamant she could take down anyone, and never backed down from a fight if she ever got into one. And Savannah _always _got the last word._

_"I want you, babe." he replied, pushing her long, blonde hair to one side to kiss her neck. Zara knew what he wanted to do. He wanted to suck on her neck, leaving a very visible hickey on Savannah's pale skin. Jake and his friends had this thing where they left a hickey a girls neck to claim her as his, and no one else could touch her. _

_Sort of like a werewolf from one of those romance stories. They left a mark on a girl's neck to make sure any male that came within metres of her would know she was taken. Kind of sadistic, Zara thought._

_"Go to hell, you ass. I don't want you. I didn't even invite you, so just get out of here before I call the cops." Savannah told him, trying to wriggle away from his hold. "Mollie and Sarah are clearly not good enough doormen for me," she grumbled._

_He laughed. "Come on, Savvy." Jake turned her around so he could look at her face. "Just one look from me made your little guards weak at the knees. No one can resist me," he said, sounding very possessive. "God, you're beautiful." he grinned, before leaning in to kiss her._

_"Get lost, Jake!" she raised a hand and slapped his cheek hard as she began to struggle more, but his hold just became stronger. _

_"Jake! You're hurting me!" she complained, and now Zara had realised that it had gone too far now._

_By now, party people began to gather around them. They were all whispering to each other, wondering what was going on but no one voiced it out loud to get an answer. _

_But no one tried to stop Jake. Except Zara. She had to step in as Savannah's best friend and stop this freak of a guy get his way with her._

_"Jake, let go of her." Zara tried to pull Savannah away. Jake just laughed at her. She moved closer to them, and she could smell the alcohol on his breath as he spoke._

_"Fuck off, Zara, you freak." he let go of Savannah's arms, but grabbed her hand instead. "I can have Savvy if I want."_

_Zara clenched her fists. She hated the way people laughed at her and called her a freak, just because she had dyed her hair bright blue and had previously self-harmed, after running away from home in Mystic Falls, a small town in Virginia. She'd always had a short temper, and she could never control it when she got angry. _

_"Shut up, Jake." she fumed, grabbing the wrist of the hand that held Savannah's and dug her nails into his skin. "If anyone's the freak, it's you." Zara knew this wasn't a good comeback, but she was so angry, her mind couldn't work as it normally would._

_"Oh, really, little miss blue hair, self-harming emo." he spat. "Come on, Savvy. I didn't realise you'd invited the freak show."_

_Jake turned away and took Savannah with him. But before he could get very far, Zara pulled Savannah away from him, and pushed him as hard as she could. He stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, his head making a sickening thud as it connected with the tiles on the kitchen floor. He didn't move; his emerald green eyes unblinking, his chest not moving._

_"Crap, is he dead?" someone whispered._

_"I don't know." someone else replied. "Call 911!"_

_Savannah and Zara both fell to their knees beside Jake. As much as Zara hated him, she hadn't meant to kill him. She began to prod his side._

"_Come on, Jake, you ass." She muttered, her eyes filling with tears. "Wake up. Get up,"_

_But Jake still didn't move._

_Her arm shaking, Savannah pressed two fingers to his neck, checking for a pulse. She shook her head at Zara and started to cry._

_"Call 911!" Kayla, another of Zara's best friends, shouted._

_Zara moved to comfort her best friend, to say sorry and that it was sort of self-defence, and she'd done it to protect her best friend, but a weird sensation thundered in her head. She pressed her hands to her temples and moaned._

_"What the hell?" she mumbled._

_"Zara, are you okay?" Savannah asked, voice shaky._

_"Yeah, I think-"_

_Zara looked at Savannah and she gasped. "Zara, your eyes."_

_"What? What about my eyes?" she asked, confused._

_"They're amber."_

Zara screamed, shooting up in her bed. That was the part that haunted her the most. Amber eyes, so different from her soft, chocolate ones. At first, Zara hadn't believed her. Why were her eyes amber? But she held up a mirror to her and she saw it was true. They were amber.

"Zara! Zara, it's okay. It was just a dream." Arms wrapped around her softly, pulling her towards him.

"But my eyes, James, they were amber," she whispered. "Why? Why amber?"

"Shhh," he soothed. "I don't know, Zara. I wish I could tell you..."

"I'm going home." she announced suddenly.

"Wait, what?" James moved so he could look into her eyes. "Are you sure, babe?"

She paused for a moment and nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure."

"But why?"

She shrugged. "Maybe they have the answers. My family. Maybe the amber eyes thing is genetic or something."

"But, Zara-"

"I'm doing it, okay!" she snapped, pulling out of his grip and turning away. "I'm going home."


	2. Chapter 1

Zara stared at her reflection in the mirror for a moment, her long, curly blue hair shimmering in the small beam of sunlight that managed to enter through a gap in her deep red curtains. Her deep, emerald green eyes seemed to clash with her choice of hair dye, but her boyfriend, James, said that the clash reflected her personality - different, special and completely weird. Zara had laughed at that, not a genuine laugh, but she didn't want James to know that the word 'weird' haunted her; made her feel scared, angry and completely alone.

She smiled at herself reassuringly, as if she was telling herself that she didn't need to worry about the things that upset her – she just needed to remember all the good things in her life – James, Savannah, and move on.

She slapped on some light pink lip gloss and stood up, looking at her body in the mirror as she tilted her head to the side. Her clothes, a pair of blue jeans, similar to her hair, a white top with a broken heart in the middle. She wore black, four inch high heeled ankle boots. Zara turned her body, looking at her reflection in different angles. She didn't think she was perfect; no one was perfect. She didn't think she was skinny; she didn't think she was fat.

She was normal – average. _Average._ Zara frowned. She hated that word. Average meant 'the usual' 'ordinary'.

Who wanted to be 'the usual'. She'd dyed her hair many colours just to get rid of that label, yet she couldn't see past it.

"You look perfect, Zara,"

She didn't turn around at first; just looking at James in her mirror, smiling. Sometimes, Zara couldn't figure out how she'd got a guy like James. He was too perfect or her – he was every girl's dream with his soft, sun-kissed blond hair, stunning blue eyes, a sexy body. James could have had any model, any girl in that club, but he chose her.

_Flashback_

_Zara and Savannah headed over to Shadow's Bar and Club, something they rarely did due to Savannah's job as a part time model and Zara's waitressing hours at a local restaurant. This Friday night, they'd decided to let everything go – get as drunk as possible, hook up with some guys for fun. Be like average twenty year olds._

_Sitting at the bar, Zara ordered Savannah an Apple Martini and herself a Chicago Cocktail, giving the bartender the money after he'd got them for her. They both turned around on their barstools to observe the room, calling dibs on guys, bitching about girls who shouldn't be wearing dresses as short as they were wearing._

"_What's a beautiful girl like you sitting here on the edges?" a deep voice asked beside Zara. She rose a brow as Savannah and gave Zara a grin and winked before walking off to find her own eye candy._

_Zara turned towards the guy, surprised when his face was mere inches from hers, his captivating blue eyes staring back into her normal green ones. The bright lights danced over his face as he grinned at her, and Zara couldn't help but grin back._

"_James," he said by means of an introduction, moving to kiss her cheek. Zara's skin tingled under his lips and she bit her lower lip as he pulled back and sat next to her._

"_Zara," she returned, smiling at him. She'd come here to find a drunk guy to have a little fun with, but she genuinely found this guy interesting, and didn't want him to get away as she didn't think she would ever get a guy like him ever again._

"_Zara. Pretty name," James told her and took a sip from his beer bottle in his hand. "Now, back to my original question: What's a beautiful girl like you sitting here on the edges, Zara?"_

_She shrugged. "I came here with my best friend to have a bit of fun. Let myself go, you know?" she replied, and realised how easy he was to talk to. "But I don't think this was a good idea."_

_James' smile faded into a frown before a grin lit up his face again. "Why not? Am I not what you expected?" he said, feigning hurt, but the grin on his face gave away he was playing about. "Fine, I'll leave. Have a great night, beautiful," he winked before standing up._

"_No!" Zara's voice sounded desperate as she grabbed hold of his hand to stop him from moving. His fingers clamped round hers and she blushed slightly. She knew this guy was special, because no one made Zara blush. Ever. "Dance with me, James," she grinned, quickly downing her drink and pulling him onto the dance floor._

"_I thought you'd never ask," James laughed and followed her._

That was nearly a year ago, and they'd been together ever since that night.

Zara finally turned to look at him and grinned. "Not as perfect as you,"

James laughed and walked towards her, encircling her in his arms and placing a soft kiss on her forehead.

"Babe, are you sure about this?" he asked her, his voice serious.

She looked up at him, meeting his lips with her own. She knew James wanted to go with her, as moral support. But she didn't need moral support. She needed answers and to be alone when she met with her parents again.

She nodded. "Positive, James. I need answers. Even if it means seeing my Mom and Dad." she shrugged. "Plus, I miss Tyler. It wasn't fair on him what I did. Just leaving. He looked up to me. Granted, I wasn't a good role model, but I've always felt bad."

James sighed but nodded. Zara wasn't one go give into others and she didn't want to start now. "Okay. Fine, you win. I won't go with you,"

"Thank you, Jay," she smiled. "I need to do this,"

"I know, babe," he replied, kissing her forehead once more. "Call me every day. That's an order, Lockwood." He laughed, poking her nose. Zara laughed back and nodded.

"Of course. But don't expect me to call every night. I might go to another club, find another amazing guy and hook up—"

James kissed her to shut her up, and she knew he knew she was playing with him. She didn't have any plans on hooking up with anyone else. James was Zara's everything, and she really didn't want to lose him.

She pulled back and grinned. "You know I love ya, Jamie,"

He nodded, but a small frown pulled at the corner of his lips. James knew Zara wasn't saying 'I love you' as in he was her heart, her everything forever, her one true love. She was saying it in a teasing way, as in 'you're my best friend', 'the one I trust',

Zara sighed. She knew it hurt him more than he liked to admit, so she cleared her throat and changed the subject.

"I'll be back in a few weeks," she announced, pulling out of his hold and packing the few things she hadn't yet put in her suitcase. "I promise," she added as she zipped it up and placed it on the floor.

James walked over and took it in his arms, carrying it out to Zara's old, knackered Ford that she'd bought from Savannah's parents for a few hundred dollars nearly two years ago. She sighed and followed him. He wasn't talking. That was James behaviour for 'you hurt my feelings'.

"James," she said as they walked outside and she unlocked her car so he could put her stuff in her boot. "James," she repeated, grabbing his arm and forced him to turn around. She kissed him hard, putting all the passion she had into the kiss. She needed to prove something to him. That she did love him, more than she loved anything else.

"I love you, Jay," she whispered, as she pulled back, but only slightly so her breath danced across his lips as she spoke. "I really love you," she admitted and pulled away further, smiling at him and getting into the driver's seat of her car. "I'll call you in a few hours."

Zara put the key in the ignition and fixed her hair in the mirror, sighing happily to herself. She'd told him she loved him. She'd actually done it. She didn't think she could, but she had.

"Zara,"

She turned as her name was called. "Yeah?"

"I love you, too." James grinned. "Drive safe, baby. I want my girlfriend back in one piece,"


	3. Chapter 2

The long drive back home to Mystic Falls was one of Zara's most boring and depressing times in her whole life. She wished she'd actually taken James up on his offer and brought him along, but then again, Zara had things she'd left behind that she didn't want him to see; things even Zara herself was scared of.

She'd gone through at least 4 CDs that were in her glove box, and was fed up of the music she had in here, most of it gifts from Savannah of artists _she_ liked, rather than Zara's preferences. Annoyed now, she turned down the music to a low hum in the car and sighed.

Way too soon before Zara was prepared for it, the old, wooden sign, bearing the words 'Welcome to Mystic Falls, Virginia' caught her eye. She took a sharp intake of breath and gripped the steering wheel tighter and shocked herself as her ears heard the plastic of it bend and moan under the pressure.

Zara gasped. This was one of the things that she had noticed in the last few weeks - she was a lot stronger. Things had started to break in her hands; things she thought would never break so easily. She had to buy a new phone last week because she'd cracked the screen after holding it in her hand to tightly. This was one of the things she was afraid of. First her eyes were amber, and then her strength was uncontrollable and inhuman.

"What's happening to me?" she asked herself.

Zara loosened her grip on the wheel and calmed herself down. Coming back to Mystic Falls was never up high on her list of things to do before she died. It most probably wouldn't be on there at all. But Zara needed answers, and her gut was telling her the family she hated, the ones who'd practically kicked her out, had them.

She drove deeper and deeper into Mystic Falls, and even she had to smile a little. Deep down, she knew she'd missed this place. After all, she had grown up here. Memories rushed through her brain as she tried to control them. Like when she'd babysat Elena Gilbert and her own younger brother Tyler whilst their parents attended a Founding Families party that Zara wasn't allowed to because her Mom caught her smoking weed in her room. Babysitting was supposed to be a punishment, but she got paid for sitting on the Gilbert's couch, watching TV whilst Elena and Tyler messed around. Didn't sound like punishment to her.

She remembered when her mom had forced her to run for the 'Miss Mystic Falls' beauty pageant, because she wanted the Lockwood's to be represented this year, and show the town that the family of the Mayor also cared about the town. As much as she told her mother she hated the idea of being in the pageant, as soon as she got into her deep blue, floor-length dress, decorated with a shimmering of silver crystals down one side of her bodice, once Jenna, Elena's Aunt had done her hair and make-up for her, she realised that it actually wasn't as bad as she had imagined. Plus, she had Joshua Blackwell as her escort, at the time he was the most sort after guy at her school, and Zara'd bagged him as her date. She'd also won the pageant, and was crowned Miss Mystic Falls 2008, something that made her mom proud of her, and Zara had surprisingly liked that.

She shook her head and tried to refocus back on the road, but another more racy, heated memory caught her attention.

This was the night that, ultimately, decided her fate. This was the night that her parents had finally had enough of her and kicked her out, telling her to come back when she'd sorted herself out. But she never came back - until now, obviously.

Zara tried to concentrate on the road in front of her, but it became impossible as this memory took over her senses...

_Ever since Zara turned fourteen, every guy in Mystic Falls wanted to get their hands on her. They wanted to run their hands through her then shimmering chocolate hair, kiss her plump, rose tinted lips._

_Well, every guy apart from Matt Donavan. Matt never seemed to notice her, and Zara hated it because she was in love with him. Not that he knew it, but everyone else did. Sure, he was a few years younger than her, but so what? Age was just a number to her, especially when it came to hot, blond guys._

_There was only one reason that Matt didn't want Zara - he was in love with Elena Gilbert. Elena- fricking- Gilbert. The sweet, pretty, innocent child Zara had babysat had caught Matt's deep, enchanting blue eyes and he hadn't looked away since._

_So, being the bitch Zara was, when she turned seventeen, she decided to go and get her man, even if he was only fifteen. Age is nothing but a number, was her motto for those years._

_She'd been at the Grill for a few hours, drinking all the alcohol she could get out of the bartender, promising him one special night with her for any drink she asked for. It took a small battering of her eyelashes and a sexy grin to get him to agree to something he would never get. She was staring at Matt's table, and Zara took a deep breath. She couldn't believe she was getting nervous over this. Zara Lockwood never got nervous over anything, let alone a guy. But this guy was the guy of her dreams, the one she didn't think she could live without._

_"Hey, Matt," she grinned as she reached him. He was sitting at a small round table at Mystic Grill with four of his idiotic friends, one of them her brother. She glanced at Tyler for a moment before smirking and turning her attention back to Matt. She reached over and touched his hand, running her fingers over the back of it and up his forearm._

_"Can I talk to you outside for a moment?" she said seductively, and one of his friends wolf whistled._

_"Do it, Donovan!" he stage whispered to Matt. "It's all worth it in the long run," He winked, and Zara realised she'd slept with him a few months ago._

_Tyler slapped the guy's arm. "Dude, that's my sister!"_

_"And what?" the guy who's name had slipped Zara's mind retorted. "She's good in bed."_

_Before Tyler could defend her like the good little brother he was, Zara winked at the guy and smirked. "And don't you know it," she said casually, making sure that Tyler knew it didn't bother her._

_Tyler shook his head, but didn't say anything more._

_"Come on then," Matt finally replied, flicking Zara's hand off his arm and stood up, heading outside. She was a little hurt at the gesture, but she smirked, not really caring. All she cared about was getting Matt tonight._

_When they were both outside, Matt turned to her and folded his arms._

_"What?" he said in a dull voice. Zara knew she wasn't one of his favourite people, which was kind of ironic because he was one of hers._

_She didn't reply. She just giggled and grabbed his hand and leading his down an alley by the side of the Grill. She gave into the weed, letting the small buzz she'd been feeling take over her. She pushed Matt against the wall and pinned him there, pressing her lips to his with a lot of force. At first, Matt tried to push her away, but after Zara's lips left his to place kisses down his neck, he was like putty in her hands._

_He moaned, grabbing Zara's face in his hands and smashing his lips to hers, running his tongue along her lower lip, asking for entrance which she gladly gave. Their tongues battled for dominance, and Zara melted into him. She'd got him. She'd got what she wanted._

_The kiss became even more heated. Matt's hands were around her waist, pushing her shirt up and grabbing her thighs, wrapping her legs round his waist. She moaned, but before any clothes could come of, a deep, depressing voice interrupted them._

_"ZARA LUCILLE LOCKWOOD! Get your tongue out of that poor kid's throat and get your ass over here right now!"_

_Zara rolled her eyes, but knew if she didn't do what her Father said, she would get in even more trouble. She detached herself from Matt and sighed._

_"Catch you later, Donovan," she winked and kissed him once more before walking away and up to her Father._

_"You always ruin my fun, Richard." she sighed, using his real name because she loved to piss him off._

_"Cut the crap, Zara. I gave you one last chance. One chance to prove to me and your Mother that you were going to turn into the good kid we thought you were going to be. But, clearly we made a big mistake in trusting you." he glared at her, narrowing his eyes at her own. "Are...are you high?"_

_"Yep." she laughed. "High and proud, Richard. Now, can we get on with this, I have business to attend to."_

_But this only made him angrier. "That's it. That's it, I'm done. Zara, go home right now and pack your crap. I'm kicking you out."_

_Zara didn't know how to respond to this. "What? You're kicking me out of my own house?"_

_"Not your house anymore, kid."_

_She folded her arms. "Fine. You know what, I'm glad. This way I don't have to look at you and Mom and see how crap my life is!"_

...

A loud crash brought Zara out of her memory. Even though being caught nearly having sex with Matt got her kicked out of her home, she didn't regret it. Not one bit. In fact, she was proud. She'd kissed every hot guy in the school.

"Hey!" someone shouted as her eyes refocused back on the road. "You, bitch, owe me a new car!"

She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Because she was staring at a man with the most beautiful blue eyes she'd ever seen.


End file.
